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George Washington 



AN ADDRESS 

BY 

LUCIUS M. CUTHBERT 



George Washing^n 



AN ADDRESS 

BY 

LUCIUS M. GUTHBERT 

DELIVERED AT THE PRESIDENT'S 

ANNUAL DINNER GIVEN BY 

MR. CASS E. HERRINGTON 

AT THE DENVER CLUB 

FEBRUARY 21, 1914 



19 14 

The Sbuth-Brooks Printing Go. 

Denver, Colorado 



GEORGE WASHINGTON 



It seems an amazing and incomprehensible 
statement, to assert that Washington was, 
in ,any manner, responsible for the estabHsh- 
ment of the British and German empires. 
Yet it is true that, in 1754, he laid the soUd, if 
then unseen, foundations upon which those 
empires were based and which subsequently 
received, through Disraeli and Bismarck for 
their respective governments, the perfected 
forms of imperial greatness. 

The incident referred to, of such far-reaching 
importance, was the attack by Washington, 
then in the service of the royal Governor 
of Virginia, with two companies of enhsted 
frontiersmen and Indians, upon the French, 
at a point on the Monongahela River, near the 
present site of Pittsburg. 

This event is admitted by historians to have 
been "the first certain slaughter" of the 
Seven Years' War between Prussia and Eng- 



land, on the one side, and France, Austria, 
Russia, Sweden, and Saxony, on the other; and 
which, with the maritime and colonial wars 
between England and France, enveloped 
Europe and America, and was not concluded 
until the Treaty of Ghent was signed in 1814. 

The results of those sixty years of warfare 
were, perhaps, the most important in the his- 
tory of the world, as they involved the de- 
struction of the French dominions in Canada 
and the overthrow of French influence in 
India, which laid the foundation of the British 
Empire; the strengthening and extension of 
the power and sovereignty of Prussia, upon 
which modern Germany is founded; and the 
loss of the American colonies to England, 
which led to the formation of the government 
of the United States. 

Hear what Thackeray says! 

"It was strange that, in a savage forest of 
Pennsylvania, a young Virginian officer should 
fire a shot and waken up a war that was to 
last sixty years; which was to cover his own 
country and pass into Europe; to cost France 
her American colonies; to sever ours from us, 
and create the great Western Repubhc; to rage 



over the Old World when extinguished in the 
New; and, of all the myriads engaged in the 
vast contest, to leave the prize of the greatest 
fame with him who struck the first blow." 

Of that epoch-making period Voltaire wrote: 

"Such was the compUcation of poHtical in- 
terests that a cannon-shot fired in America 
could give the signal that set Europe in a 
blaze." 

To which our own Parkman replies: 

"Not a cannon-shot! But a volley from 
the hunting-pieces of a few backwoodsmen 
commanded by George Washington." 

Such was the beginning of his career, when 
only twenty-two years of age, and which con- 
tinued almost uninterruptedly in the service 
of his country until his death. 

He refers, in his Farewell Address, in touch- 
ing language to that long term of service: 

"Though, in reviewing the incidents of my 
administration, I am unconscious of inten- 
tional error, I am, nevertheless, too sensible 
of my defects not to think that I may have 
committed many errors. Whatever they may 
be, I fervently beseech the Almighty to avert 
or mitigate the evils to which they may tend. 

5 



I shall also carry with me the hope that my 
country will never cease to view them with 
indulgence; and that, after forty-five years of 
my life dedicated to its service with an up- 
right zeal, the faults of incompetent abihties 
will be consigned to oblivion, as myself must 
soon be to the mansions of rest. " 

It is small wonder, then, that in his busy 
life, with its lofty purposes and devotion to 
duty, he should have had but httle time for 
study or literary pursuits. And it is of the 
most trifling importance to us, in view of all 
he accompHshed for his country and mankind, 
that he should not have been so cultured as 
Jefferson or Hamilton, or so great a classical 
scholar as Gladstone. His merits are to be 
measured by larger standards than those of 
letters, and his fame rests upon more endur- 
ing foundations than literary accompHshments 
or proficiency in scholarship. 

Yet, in preparing his state papers, he exer- 
cised that same care and thoroughness which 
characterized all his methods and actions at 
momentous periods. 

This is well illustrated by the circumstances 
connected with the preparation of his Farewell 



Address, which was issued in 1796. Madison, 
at Washington's request, prepared the first 
draft; from which Washington drew up 
a paper, which he submitted to Hamilton 
and Jay. Hamilton then prepared another 
document, entirely new as to form, but the 
same in substance; which Washington pre- 
ferred as being "more copious on material 
points, more dignified on the whole, and with 
less egotism; less exposed to criticism, and 
better calculated to meet the eye of discerning 
readers — foreigners particularly, whose curi- 
osity, I have Uttle doubt, will lead them to 
inspect it attentively, and to pronounce their 
opinions on the performance." 

The document was then put into the hands 
of Pickering, Wolcott, and McHenry, with the 
request, as Pickering says, "that we examine 
it and note any alterations and corrections 
which we should think best. We did so. But 
our notes were very few, and regarded chiefly 
the grammar and composition." Finally 
Washington revised the whole, and it was 
made pubhc. 

That address has received the deserved ad- 
miration of scholars and statesmen for over a 



hundred years. As a literary production, the 
credit unquestionably belor^s to Hamilton. 
But the sentiments — the Hving, vital princi- 
ples — are entirely Washington's. 

His own style of composition was, however, 
clear and direct, with much of the Johnsonian 
poise and dignity which was very popular with 
English men of letters at that time. The fol- 
lowing extract from a letter, written by him to 
La Fayette in the February (1783) following 
his retirement from command of the army, 
shows the simplicity and purity of his diction 
and possesses much of hterary excellence : 

"I have not only retired from all pubHc 
employment, but I am retiring within myself, 
and shall be able to view the solitary walks 
and tread the paths of private life with heart- 
felt satisfaction. Envious of none, I am de- 
termined to be pleased with all; and this, my 
dear friend, being the order of my march, I 
will move gently down the stream of Hfe until 
I sleep with my fathers. " 

Washington's expressions, in his Farewell 
Address, concerning the proper foreign poUcy 
for this government are as true and pertinent 
today as they were in 1796: 

8 



" Observe good faith and justice towards all 
nations. * * * The great rule of conduct 
for us in regard to foreign nations is, in extend- 
ing our commercial relations, to have with 
them as httle political connection as possible. 
So far as we have already formed engagements, 
let them be fulfilled with perfect good faith. 
Here let us stop." 

Absolutely in harmony with those principles 
is the supposed and reported attitude of Presi- 
dent Wilson toward the recent Act of Congress 
giving vessels engaged in the coastwise trade 
a preference and favorable discrimination in f| 

the use of the Panama Canal. And it is an 
eloquent tribute to the sense of justice and 
fairness on the part of the people of this coun- 
try that there should be such a general and 
emphatic desire that our government fulfill, 
with perfect good faith, the terms of the Hay- 
Pauncefote Treaty. Whatever material ad- 
vantage may be lost to the interests involved 
is compensated a thousand fold by the preser- 
vation of our national reputation and the con- 
sciousness of our own rectitude. 

In this connection it may not be amiss to 
say that it is clearly the duty of every citizen, 

9 



.««*' 



\ 



at this time, regardless of political affiliations, 
to give his earnest support to the President in 
his efforts to solve questions of national im- 
portance. He has brought about a Tariff 
reform which may, and it is hoped will, prove 
a blessing; a Banking and Currency system 
which is admitted to have many excellent fea- 
tures ; and he is now seeking to solve the main 
questions that have complicated the relations 
between business and the government, and 
which, admittedly, have not received any very 
statesmanhke treatment hitherto. And what 
is most significant and encouraging is the un- 
dertone of friendhness, in his recent Message, 
toward the larger business interests of the 
country and of sympathy with them in a pre- 
dicament which is not altogether of their own 
making; as are, also, his declarations that the 
prosperity of the railways and the prosperity 
of the country are inseparable, and that the 
antagonism between business and the govern- 
ment is over. The tolerant and reconciling tem- 
per he has shown is certainly very much within 
the spirit and teachings of his great predecessor. 
Washington's modesty and disinchnation 
for public speaking were very pronounced. On 

10 



a certain occasion, when being thanked by the 
Virginia Legislature for his distinguished serv- 
ices to his country, he was so much embar- 
rassed and disconcerted that he was unable to 
utter a word ; and Speaker Robinson, to reheve 
the situation, said: "Sit down, Mr. Wash- 
ington ! Your modesty equals your valor ; and 
that surpasses any language I possess. " 

When delivering his Inaugural Address in 
New York, in 1789, it is said "he trembled; 
and several times could scarce make out to 
read his speech — though it must be supposed 
he had often read it before. " 

Fisher Ames, referring to the delivery of his 
Farewell Address, says : 

" He addressed the two Houses in the Senate 
Chamber. It was a very touching scene and 
quite of a solemn kind. His aspect grave, 
almost to sadness; his modesty actually shak- 
ing; his voice deep, a little tremulous, and so 
low as to call for close attention. " 

And Jefferson said that he had served in the 
Virginia Legislature with Washington and in 
Congress with Dr. Frankhn, and that he had 
never known either of them to speak as long 
as ten minutes at a time. 

11 



The power of eloquence as an effective 
agency seems to lose its importance when con- 
sidered in connection with Washington and 
his tremendous influence. He was unques- 
tionably the most influential member of the 
First Continental Congress, held in Philadel- 
phia in October, 1774, although his name does 
not appear in its published proceedings. In 
answer to an inquiry, Patrick Henry said, on 
his return from that Congress : "If you speak 
of eloquence, Mr. Rutledge of South CaroUna 
is, by far, the greatest orator; but if you speak 
of sohd information and sound judgment, 
Colonel Washington is unquestionably the 
greatest man on that floor." 

Perhaps no character in the history of our 
country stands as a more direct contrast to 
certain public men in high government offices 
today than Washington. This is shown, not 
only by his calmness, moderation, and digni- 
fied reticence, but in even a more emphatic 
manner by his attitude toward the salaries 
and emoluments of the various public offices 
he held. Not only were they deemed ample 
remuneration for his services, when he did 
accept them, but he seemed always anxious to 

12 



avoid the necessity of accepting any com- 
pensation. 

It is a well-known fact that he served the 
entire eight years, when in command of the 
Revolutionary forces, without pay. And he 
pursued the same poUcy when he became 
President. 

What could be more disinterested and pa- 
triotic than the following expressions in his first 
Inaugural Address ; and what a comment they 
contain upon the undignified efforts of some 
of our pubUc men to increase their revenue! 

"When I was first honored with a call into 
the service of my country, then on the eve of 
an arduous struggle for its liberties, the light 
in which I contemplated my duty required 
that I should renounce every pecuniary com- 
pensation. From this resolution I have in no 
instance departed. And, being still under the 
impressions which produced it, I must decline, 
as inappHcable to myself, any share in the per- 
sonal emoluments which may be indispensably 
included in a permanent provision for the 
Executive Department; and must accordingly 
pray that the pecuniary estimates for the sta- 
tion in which I am placed may, during my 

13 



continuance in it, be limited to such actual 
expenditures as the pubhc good may be 
thought to require." 

The State of Virginia presented him with 
certain shares of stock in the Potomac Com- 
pany as a testimonial of the esteem of the peo- 
ple of the state. With a delicacy which char- 
acterized all of his actions, he accepted the 
public gift, only because he feared that by 
declining it he might hurt the feelings of his 
people. But he left the entire amount, by his 
will, for the establishment of a university in 
the District of Columbia. 

Ever since his death there has been a process 
of hero-building going on which tends to make 
a demigod and almost mythical character of 
one whose chief beauty and strength lay in his 
simphcity and naturalness. 

This same tendency is at work with the 
memories of Franklin and Lincoln; and will, 
in the course of time, if carried to its logical 
conclusion, place these great and most benefi- 
cent of men in the same class with Jupiter, 
Wotan, and King Arthur. With Washington, 
this spirit showed itself, at an early day, in the 
biography of that worthy, but overzealous, 

14 



writer, the Revd. Weems of cherry-tree fame. 
Of Frankhn there have been innumerable exag- 
gerated eulogies, of no historical value when 
compared with his own unpretentious auto- 
biography, where we see him, walking down 
Broad Street, "with a roll under each arm, 
and devouring a third. " 

Washington was one of the most human of 
men. Of graceful and commanding stature, 
he was fond of dancing, riding, and athletic 
sports. Kind and gentle in manner, he was, 
nevertheless, overwhelming in his wrath when 
aroused by righteous indignation. General 
Scott, who was with him at the battle of Mon- 
mouth, says that when Washington met Gen- 
eral Charles Lee and his troops, retreating 
from the Enghsh, "he swore like an Angel 
from Heaven. " 

After the discovery of the treachery of his 
former Attorney-General, and then Secretary 
of State, Edmund Randolph, in his intrigue 
with France, he laid the whole matter before 
his cabinet; and Pickering, who was present 
as Secretary of War, thus describes the scene : 

"At this point Washington rose to his feet — 
the pamphlet in his hand — his whole aspect 

15 



and manner showing the storm that was 
gathering, and his voice rising as he spoke." 

And then, after reciting the details of the 
unpleasant event, Pickering continues: 

"As he uttered these last words, he threw 
the pamphlet dow n, and gave way to a terrific 
burst of denunciation in unrestrained expres- 
sions. He then calmly resumed his seat. 
The storm was over. With perfect serenity 
other business was entered upon, and the name 
or thought of Edmund Randolph was never 
again suffered to disturb his temper." 

It was only natural that such a strong, un- 
compromising and consistently upright char- 
acter as Washington should create many ene- 
mies. And his were numerous, and of all 
grades. Jefferson, Madison, Monroe, Ed- 
mund Randolph, of course, Generals Gates 
and Charles Lee, Dr. Benjamin Rush, Thomas 
Payne, and many of inferior rank, were of the 
number. None could, or did, accuse him of 
dishonesty; but they were none the less bitter 
in their attacks, which were prompted mainly 
by envy, jealousy or disappointment; and 
which he felt very keenly. 

His answer to these attacks was character- 

16 



istic of his patriotic and long-suffering nature: 

*'My temper leads me to peace and har- 
mony with all men; and it is pecuKarly my 
wish to avoid any feuds or dissensions with 
those who are embarked in the same great 
national interest with myself; as every differ- 
ence of this kind must, in its consequence, be 
very injurious." 

And again he said : 

" I am gliding down the stream of hfe, and 
wish, as is natural, that my remaining days 
may be undisturbed and tranquil; and, con- 
scious of my integrity, I would wilhngly hope 
that nothing would occur tending to give me 
anxiety. But should anything present itself, 
in this or other publication, I shall never un- 
dertake the task of recrimination; nor do I 
know that I should ever enter upon my justi- 
fication. " 

But while he made enemies, he left none at 
his death. All parties — Whigs and Demo- 
crats, Republicans and Federahsts — united in 
doing him honor. 

At the inauguration of his successor, John 
Adams (March 4, 1797), an eyewitness states 
that when Washington introduced Adams he 

17 



proceeded to read a brief valedictory, and thus 
describes the scene: 

"The most profound silence greeted him, 
as if the great assembly desired to hear him 
breathe and catch his breath in homage of 
their hearts. Mr. Adams covered his face 
with both his hands; the sleeves of his coat and 
his hands were covered with tears. Then, 
when strong, nervous sobs broke loose, when 
tears covered the faces — then the great man 
was shaken. I never took my eyes from his 
face. Large drops fell from his cheeks." 

What more glowing tribute could be paid 
to his greatness and usefulness than the lan- 
guage of Talleyrand, French Minister of 
Foreign Affairs, in his report on the occasion 
of Washington's death : 

*'The man who, amid the decadence of 
modern ages, first dared believe that he could 
inspire degenerate nations with courage to 
rise to the level of repubhcan virtues, Hved for 
all nations and for all countries." 

His life has taught the great lesson that 
virtue is the chief attribute of true heroism, 
and that the only ambition worthy of man is 
that which is purified by patriotism. 

18 



Webster found in him and his teachings the 
inspiration for his noblest flights of oratory. 
And the hold which Lincoln has upon the 
hearts of the people today is attributable to 
the fact that he, more than any other Ameri- 
can, possessed the same attributes and was 
governed by the same motives and principles 
as Washington. 

In him were concentrated, httle of genius 
and no wit, but the simple virtues of integ- 
rity, patience, courage and loyalty ; and these 
he placed unreservedly at the disposal of his 
country. 

Alexanders, Caesars and Napoleons flash 
through the pages of history, hke meteors 
across a cloudless night-sky; dazzhng in their 
brilliancy, but leaving behind them little else 
than wonder, amazement and admiration. 
But Washington, hke the glorious sun, has 
spread the rays of his beneficent and hfe- 
giving influence for the benefit of all nations 
and all times; and has shown that the grandest 
thing in the world, next to the radiance that 
flows from the Almighty Throne, is the hght 
of a noble and beautiful hfe, wrapping itself 
in benediction round the destinies of men. 

19 











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